Brianna Burns, 22, and Kyle Wireman, 28, were arrested June 29 in connection to the November 2015 opioid deaths of Justin Eschenberg, 30, of Trumbauersville and William Grzyminski, 26, of East Greenville.

        Burns and Wireman are accused of delivering fake Percocet pills laced with fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl to Eschenberg; the same pills are suspected in the death of Grzyminski, who allegedly obtained them from Burns.        

        Law enforcement officials made the arrests following an investigation that lasted more than a month, according to Trooper Jordan Houck.

        Burns and Wireman face charges in Bucks County of drug delivery resulting in death, a first degree felony, as well as involuntary manslaughter, criminal conspiracy and related drug charges, according to information posted on Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial Web Portal.

        Burns faces additional charges of manufacturing, delivery or possession with intent to deliver drugs and criminal use of a communication facility, as well as two charges of reckless endangerment, according to information posted on the web portal.

        The charge of drug delivery resulting in death could carry a sentence of 20 to 40 years in prison, according to Tim Gannon, the Bucks County deputy district attorney who is prosecuting the case.

        Houck, the arresting officer, described this incident as his first encounter with acetyl fentanyl, a potent opioid analgesic. "I understand that it is significantly more powerful than typical heroin," Houck said June 30.

        According to the affidavit of probable cause filed in the Perkasie court of District Judge Charles W. Baum, Houck responded to a residence in the 100 block of East Broad Street in Trumbauersville for the report of a death with unknown circumstances on Nov. 3, 2015. Authorities learned that Eschenberg had died there within the previous 24 hours. They also discovered a small blue pill in the kitchen stamped A 215 along with a five-dollar bill rolled up next to it. A text message on Eschenberg's cell phone to Wireman indicated possible drug use.

        Two days later, Wireman allegedly confessed to providing two counterfeit, laced Percocet pills to Eschenberg, the paperwork states. Wireman explained that he purchased three pills from Burns, and that he ingested one orally and got sick.

        An autopsy on Eschenberg's body, completed Nov. 4, 2015, identified the cause of his death as an "adverse effect" from the drugs identified in his blood, which included fentanyl, acetyl fentanyl and benzoylecgonine, according to the document.

Wireman also said he learned Burns may have known the counterfeit pills were laced. He added that he believed another person named "Will" had purchased similar pills from Burns and died, according to the document.

        In a police interview on Nov. 5, 2015, Burns allegedly admitted to picking up 30 blue pills in Camden, N.J, and delivering a quantity of the pills to Wireman and Grzyminski on Nov. 2. She told police she sells drug to make money because she does not have a job.

        According to the affidavit, said she nearly died after taking three of the pills and warned Wireman and Grzyminski that there was something wrong with them. She expressed that she felt somewhat responsible for the deaths, Houck says in the affidavit.

        An autopsy of Grzyminski's body – completed Dec. 29, 2015, by the Montgomery County Coroner – determined cause of death as accidental due to narcotics abuse, specifically fentanyl, oxycodone and clonazepam, the information states.

        Houck said the Upper Perk Police District worked closely with the state police to investigate the incident involving Grzyminski.

        "The Upper Perk police were already involved," Houck said. "They were a big help in all of this."

        A message left June 30 for Upper Perk Police District Chief Mike Devlin was not returned as of press time.

        Burns and Wireman were arraigned June 29 by Baum. Burns was remanded to Bucks County Jail after failing to post bail, set at 10 percent of $750,000. Baum set Wireman's bail at $750,000 unsecured.

        A preliminary hearing for both defendants, before Baum, has been scheduled for 10:15 a.m. on Monday, July 25.